Interchangeable shoe soles and heels



Feb. 6, 1962 R. T. KAUFFMAN ET AL 3,019,534

INTERCHANGEABLE SHOE SOLES AND HEELS Filed April 16. 1959 INVENTORS ROBERT T. KAUFMAN BYBENJAMIN ARLITZ United States Patent fire 3,019,534 Fatented Feb. 6, 1962 3,019,534 INTERCHANGEABLE SHOE SOLES AND HEELS Robert T. Kaulfman, 2035 Creston Ave., and Benjamin Ariitz, 170 Vermilyea Ave., both of Bronx, N.Y. Filed Apr. 16, 1959, Ser. No. 806,805 1 Claim. (Cl. 36-15) This invention relates to the art of footwear construction and particularly concerns a novel sole and/or heel structure provided with means for quickly attaching the sole or heel to a boot or shoe and for quickly detaching the sole or heel.

It is a principal object of the invention to provide an article of footwear with a mid-sole having a ridged or ribbed and grooved outer surface, and with an outer sole having a correspondingly ridged or ribbed and grooved inner surface, the ribbed and grooved surface of the outer sole being removably engaged with the ribbed and grooved surface of the mid-sole of said article of footwear.

For further comprehension of the invention, and of the objects and advantages thereof, reference will be had to the following description and accompanying drawings, and to the appended claims in which the various novel features of the invention are more particularly set forth.

In the accompanying drawings forming a material part of this disclosure:

FIG. 1 is a fragmentary side elevational view of a shoe having sole and heel structures emboding the invention.

FIG. 2 is a fragmentary exploded view of portions of the sole and heel structures of FIG. 1.

Referring to FIGS. 1 and 2, there is shown a shoe 20 with upper 21*, welt 22 and an improved form of sole and heel construction. In this form, the mid-sole 24 is formed with transverse ribs 26 inverted T-shape in cross section, providing T-shaped grooves 28 therebetween. The outer sole 32 on its inner attaching side of surface 90 is formed with T-shaped transverse ribs 92 providing inverted T-shaped grooves 94 therebetween for its entire length. On its outer or tread surface 96, the outer sole is formed with depending inverted T-shaped ribs 98 along its heel portion 100*, the remainder of the tread surface being smooth. Inverted T-shaped grooves are formed between ribs 98. A separate heel 102 is detachably mounted on the heel portion 100 of the outer sole. Heel 102 is formed with T-shaped transverse ribs 104 on its inner attaching surface, providing inverted T-shaped grooves 106 therebetween.

In assembling the shoe 20 of FIG. 1, the outer sole 32 is slid laterally of the mid-sole 24 whereby the ends of the ribs 92 of the outer sole 32 engage the ends of the grooves 28 of the mid-sole 24 and continued lateral movement of the outer sole toward the mid-sole moves the ribs of the outer sole into interlocking relation with the grooves of the mid-sole as will be understood. The heel 102 may be attached to the heel portion 100 of the outer sole 32 in the same manner, by lateral movement of the heel toward the heel portion with the ribs and grooves meshing, whereby the heel is firmly secured on the shoe.

While we have illustrated and described the preferred embodiment of our invention, it is to be understood that we do not limit ourselves to the precise constructions herein disclosed and that various changes and modifications may be made within the scope of the invention as defined in the appended claim.

Having thus described our invention, what we claim as new, and desire to secure by United States Letters Patent is:

A shoe construction, comprising an upper, a mid-sole secured to said upper, said mid-sole having a solid bottom with a plurality of alternate inverted T-shaped ribs and T-shaped grooves, said ribs and grooves being uniformly spaced from heel end to toe end of the mid-sole and extending across the mid-sole, an outer sole removably attached to said mid-sole, said outer sole having a solid body with a tread side and an attaching side, said attaching side having a plurality of alternate T-shaped ribs and inverted T-shaped grooves, uniformly spaced from heel end to toe end of the outer sole, and extending across the outer sole, the ribs and grooves of the outer sole mating with and engaging with the groves and ribs respectively of the mid-sole whereby the outer sole is attached to and removed from said mide-sole by snapping the outer sole onto and out of the midsole, said outer sole having the heel end portion of the tread side thereof formed with a plurality of alternate inverted T- shaped ribs and T-shaped grooves extending across the heel end portion for its entire area, removably engaging a separate heel, said heel having a solid body with an attaching side formed with equally spaced alternate T- shaped ribs and inverted T-shaped grooves extending across the heel for its entire area and interlocked with the grooves and ribs rmpectively of the heel end portion.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,542,174 Robidoux June 16, 1925 FOREIGN PATENTS 1,013 Great Britain Ian. 14, 1914 1,176 Great Britain May 2, 1871 25,849 Great Britain Nov. 15, 1906 26,704 Great Britain Dec. 3, 1907 45,118 Switzerland June 10, 1908 47,302 Austrian Apr. 10, 1911 47,481 Austrian Dec. 3, 1909 208,938 Australia Oct. 27, 1955 266,627 Switzerland May 1, 1950 374,421 Italy Aug. 24, 1939 706,305 France Mar. 24, 1931 802,801 Germany Feb. 26, 1951 828,356 Germany Jan. 17, 1952 927,795 Germany May 16, 1955 

